In practice today, particularly in the home, there are many applications and uses for remote control devices. The most common being remote control of television, video, cable, garage door openers, sound systems, etc.
Another device in the home which can also be remotely controlled is a thermostat. Most remote control automatic thermostat systems are `computer` controlled. The temperature in a zone(s) can be controlled based on the day, the temperature setting, the duration of time at a temperature setting and changing the temperature setting and its duration.
The present invention embodies a device adapted to engage prior art thermostat dials. The device is remotely controlled and rotates the thermostat dial either clockwise or counterclockwise
The invention further comprises a remote control device which indicates the current temperature setting of any of the zones in a particular dwelling and enables the user to remotely control the individual thermostat settings to a desired temperature.
Broadly, the invention comprises a device which engages the dial of a prior art thermostat. The device is adapted to index remotely the dial, clockwise or counter-clockwise, any desired amount (within the range of thermostat) and to display what the temperature setting is to the user. Assuming a dwelling with three zones, a remote control device of the invention allows the user to press zone 1, zone 2 or zone 3 to emit a display indicating the current setting of the thermostat for that zone. The user may then remotely adjust the temperature setting in each of the zones as desired.